there is a peak for every sport especially for women although not all,
generally ages between 18-21 are the peak time to be competitive in ones career like in figure skating, gymnastics etc.

but there are those who matured late in the competitive area but got better as they get older or late bloomers
like Kostner, Akiko, Shizuka, Slutskaya
these imo, have proven themselves to have lasting careers

Originally Posted by hurrah

(And this is completely off topic, but can someone please tell me why Alena gets high PCS? She's not slow but she's not fast either. Her ice coverage is decent but not great. It's not like she has transitions. And her skating is not refined. But there must be something. But I don't see it.)

I think though, that when Sochi comes around, it ought to be Polina K who should be competitive as a senior skater. Her skating this year (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nrF_OIKPA6g) reminds me of how Carolina Kostner and Shizuka's skating at the same age. It seems to me that she has the physique that would be able to carve deep edges while skating fast and also jump big. And also Adelina, if she can fix her jump issues.

But of course, with younger skaters, it's a huge gamble because they might just grow a inch or so during the season and you don't know how they will react to the pressure of skating for the home crowd. So maybe, when Olympics comes around, it might just be Alena and Ksenia (who in the meanwhile has fixed her jumps) who represent Russia at Olympics! Wouldn't that be ironic.

I can definitely see Alena competing in 2014 Olympics, defnitely one of Liza, Adelina or uk will be left out
but Makarova ? , if pigs fly, she just got passed on WTT and is now being assigned for B competitions

Do you mean that you think one of Liza, Adelina or Julia will be left out? Not that anyone can know for sure, but I can see Liza and Julia being left out with Polina K., Adelina and Alena going.

I love Liza’s jumps, but she seems to have endurance problems. Even when she was little, at the end of her competition program, she seemed to be gasping for air and I always found that a little odd because little girls don’t usually do that, and I figured it was because Minshin was her coach and he was pushing her in a way that other little girls aren’t pushed. And then I got a sense of her poor ice coverage this year and so now, I figure she just doesn’t have the right muscles to skate at full speed for four and a half minutes. (They say you need to have the physique to run a 400-meter race.) Maybe this can be overcome with some serious cross-country training, but some people just don’t have the right DNA to achieve it, and my guess is that her body’s simply not like that (not that my opinion amounts to much). For what it’s worth, that’s my reason for not choosing Liza.

With Julia, I love her flexibility, but flexibility is worth only so much, and again, not that anyone can know, but I think with her, puberty might hit her quite badly. Julia has short arms and legs, and her torso, particularly chest circumference, is already proportionately big. And having well-developed chest is a disadvantage for skaters. I noticed that Brian Joubert was looking haggard earlier in the season and maybe he was trying to lose his upper-body muscles? Anyway, I thought his chest had sized down by Worlds and he did so well! So I just think that maybe she won’t survive puberty because of her upper body size, though nothing is for certain when it comes to puberty. All the clips show that people mature at a different pace. But, even if puberty doesn’t affect her badly, Polina, Adelina and Alena will probably be able to out jump her.

I think though, that when Sochi comes around, it ought to be Polina K who should be competitive as a senior skater. Her skating this year (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nrF_OIKPA6g) reminds me of how Carolina Kostner and Shizuka's skating at the same age. It seems to me that she has the physique that would be able to carve deep edges while skating fast and also jump big. And also Adelina, if she can fix her jump issues.

Eh. They all looked tall and a bit awkward. Don't see any other similarities. Don't see Kostner's speed and flow. Don't see the ease, secure, and effortlessness on her blade compare to Arakawa.

Do you mean that you think one of Liza, Adelina or Julia will be left out? Not that anyone can know for sure, but I can see Liza and Julia being left out with Polina K., Adelina and Alena going.

I love Liza’s jumps, but she seems to have endurance problems. Even when she was little, at the end of her competition program, she seemed to be gasping for air and I always found that a little odd because little girls don’t usually do that, and I figured it was because Minshin was her coach and he was pushing her in a way that other little girls aren’t pushed. And then I got a sense of her poor ice coverage this year and so now, I figure she just doesn’t have the right muscles to skate at full speed for four and a half minutes. (They say you need to have the physique to run a 400-meter race.) Maybe this can be overcome with some serious cross-country training, but some people just don’t have the right DNA to achieve it, and my guess is that her body’s simply not like that (not that my opinion amounts to much). For what it’s worth, that’s my reason for not choosing Liza.

With Julia, I love her flexibility, but flexibility is worth only so much, and again, not that anyone can know, but I think with her, puberty might hit her quite badly. Julia has short arms and legs, and her torso, particularly chest circumference, is already proportionately big. And having well-developed chest is a disadvantage for skaters. I noticed that Brian Joubert was looking haggard earlier in the season and maybe he was trying to lose his upper-body muscles? Anyway, I thought his chest had sized down by Worlds and he did so well! So I just think that maybe she won’t survive puberty because of her upper body size, though nothing is for certain when it comes to puberty. All the clips show that people mature at a different pace. But, even if puberty doesn’t affect her badly, Polina, Adelina and Alena will probably be able to out jump her.

At the end of the day though, ice is slippery!

yes that's what I mean, I think it's very risky of sending 3 young skaters to the Olympics
chances of Alena getting one of those spots are actually high barring injury , despite people saying Alena is done, she has proven she is a fighter. Alena seems to be hitting her peak in her early 20's just in time for 2014 Olympics

I do think it could be Liza who will be left out in 2014 Olympics , her poor ice coverage as Mishin mentioned was she actually gets tired if she takes too much ice coverage this was in juniors though, the good thing is Liza knows her weakness is her spins and ice coverage and is working on it, Adelina could be a safe bet , she seems to be hitting puberty now and could be well adjusted by 2014, Julia too is in limbo, she might not go to 2014 because she is too young and still have many chances to go to another Olympics cycle but the judges seem to have taken an early hint of the successor to Yuna with her generous scores. Julia's jumps have actually gotten bigger now , only her 2A is a bit shorter in height compared to say Liza and Adelina's 2A , her spins alone racks enough points, and her body supports this, her frame is like that of a gymnast with narrow hips, if she stays thin when she hits puberty, she could have the frame of Yuna or a Rhythmic Gymnast only a bit shorter and will be of an advantage to Julia. Polina K. has all the skills but she is a bit of a headcase for now, I hope she can fix it, I would love to see her at 2014 Olympics

but as they say, ice is slippery and depending on their GP and World results in the coming seasons
It could be : Alena, Adelina and Julia
Alternates: Tuk, Polina K. and Shelepen

For me it would be depressing if the top contenders for gold at Sochi would be the same exact skaters as we saw this year at Worlds. I want to see new skaters rise not the same old ones that we've been seeing since about 2004 and who have failed at two Olympics. That in itself would be telling of the depth in Ladies skating.

What's horrible is that with the weakened field the US still could not get either a medal or a place back. Yes, I recognize that Ashley came close, but if she had skated a clean short she may have gotten on the podium, and it may be her only chance. Figure with YuNa, Miki and at probably two new Russian girls next year, it will be much harder. Hopefully Gracie Gold or somebody will be reaching her peak soon and finding music to skate to that she really likes.

Yuna is finished. And even if she comes back it will only be for Worlds. As was shown last year at Worlds Yuna was not the same skater as before and that was after a one year layoff. Imagine being off the ice for two years then trying to compete.

Yuna is finished. And even if she comes back it will only be for Worlds. As was shown last year at Worlds Yuna was not the same skater as before and that was after a one year layoff. Imagine being off the ice for two years then trying to compete.

I wouldn't say finished , Zhenya has stopped competing for years and then came back again and again and was still winning medals
It depends on Yuna but she needs a few more competitions before getting her old competitive form back, but I have a feeling she may be pressured by her Fed again to compete at next years Worlds or ultimately the Olympics
to get enough spots for Korea and make a splash for a name for the upcoming 2018 Olympics in Korea

We just saw ladies over age 20 rule the podium in Nice. Carolina Kostner is 24 years old; Alena Leonova is 21; and Akiko Suzuki is 26.

I wouldn't put Kostner and Suzuki in the same category. Kostner has passed her prime as a jumper while Suzuki hasn't. Kostner had enough reputation and knew she was the judge's favorite. She could afford to water down her jump content and transitions as much as she wanted. She was an athlete little more than a ballet dancer is. She was an athlete as much as Ando was an artist last year. Suzuki did not have such luxury, and perhaps never will because I truly doubt she'll ever be JFS's favorite. She will retire when she realizes that she can no longer improve her jumps.

I wouldn't say finished , Zhenya has stopped competing for years and then came back again and again and was still winning medals
It depends on Yuna but she needs a few more competitions before getting her old competitive form back, but I have a feeling she may be pressured by her Fed again to compete at next years Worlds or ultimately the Olympics
to get enough spots for Korea and make a splash for a name for the upcoming 2018 Olympics in Korea

Korea is in such a tough position. At this point still, it is YuNa or no one. This in turn puts YuNa into a tough position. After all, the way skating moves forward and changes, she can't just regain her old form. She may have to exceed it, although we can say that no current skater has yet equaled the quality of her programs at the Olympics in terms of content and execution. But she hasn't shown in recent Worlds showings that simply working hard for a year or so and showing up to compete at the end will gain her a gold. She would have to live and breathe figure skating from now to Sochi, I think, and I'm not sure she wants to or that she can, given her other commitments. I hope she's not pressured back into competition.

Of course, she's so extraordinary that if anyone could do it, she could. So I never say never. But it won't be a pleasant two years for her if that is the goal.

Korea is in such a tough position. At this point still, it is YuNa or no one. This in turn puts YuNa into a tough position. After all, the way skating moves forward and changes, she can't just regain her old form. She may have to exceed it, although we can say that no current skater has yet equaled the quality of her programs at the Olympics in terms of content and execution. But she hasn't shown in recent Worlds showings that simply working hard for a year or so and showing up to compete at the end will gain her a gold. She would have to live and breathe figure skating from now to Sochi, I think, and I'm not sure she wants to or that she can, given her other commitments. I hope she's not pressured back into competition.

Of course, she's so extraordinary that if anyone could do it, she could. So I never say never. But it won't be a pleasant two years for her if that is the goal.

Korea has strong skaters coming up in Hae-Jin Kim and So-Yeon Park. They are no Yuna's, but they are pretty good and should be able to get/keep 2 spots at the Worlds and Olympics for Korea over the next few years.

As a high school teacher, I see the maturity level of teen girls. I think what may be happening--especially in Mirai's case, I didn't watch all the other clips--is that after a certain age, the girls have to do a more "sophisticated" performance, with heavy music, trying to express sadness or desire or pain in their skating. They are adorable doing the younger, cuter music like the Nutcracker or Charlie Chaplin or whatever, but seem wooden and lost when they have to skate to the requiem of the sad violin. Teen girls of today--even the older ones--still have cutesy taste, at least my students do. They reach a point where they don't seem to like what they're skating to any more.

A lot of choreographers seem to think that maturity = sad music. That is partially true. However, there's so much maturity and nuance in upbeat music, too. Mirai should be encouraged to develop her artistry using music that suits her.

What's horrible is that with the weakened field the US still could not get either a medal or a place back. Yes, I recognize that Ashley came close, but if she had skated a clean short she may have gotten on the podium, and it may be her only chance.

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As for the thread topic, I think as far as technical ability goes, probably early to mid teens on average. Then, as skaters get older, as they realize they can't always jump their way to titles, other aspects of their skating develop.

As for the thread topic, I think as far as technical ability goes, probably early to mid teens on average. Then, as skaters get older, as they realize they can't always jump their way to titles, other aspects of their skating develop.

Maybe typically that's true, but then poster Bartek put a video on YouTube of Shizuka doing quite a few different triple-triples, which she managed to crank out even when she was 24 or so (in practices at the Olympics, though not actually in the actual programs). Don't you just love exceptions to the rule?

I don't know why some are so eager to see the current generation of skaters retire. It'll be cool to see some of them actually get better over the next two seasons, as opposed to the flavours of the month dominate briefly.